“We’ve tested Nrf2 in models of Huntington’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and ALS, and it is the most protective thing we’ve ever found.

“Based on the magnitude and the breadth of the effect, we really want to understand Nrf2 and its role in protein regulation better.”

The study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences tested Nrf2 in two models of Parkinson’s disease: cells with mutations in the proteins LRRK2 and α-synuclein.

By activating Nrf2, the researchers turned on several “house-cleaning” mechanisms in the cell to remove excess LRRK2 and α-synuclein.

First author and staff research scientist Dr Gaia Skibinski said: “Nrf2 coordinates a whole programme of gene expression, but we didn’t know how important it was for regulating protein levels until now.

“Overexpressing Nrf2 in cellular models of Parkinson’s disease resulted in a huge effect.